Word Document Filling
Use Microsoft Word files as form templates to fill or as source documents to extract data from — no manual conversion, no reformatting, no extra steps
Overview
Microsoft Word is the default document format for a significant portion of business paperwork — HR offer letters, legal agreements, intake questionnaires, referral packets, credentialing checklists. Despite the industry's shift toward fillable PDFs, Word documents remain deeply embedded in regulated workflows, and many organizations maintain years of data locked inside .docx and .doc files.
Instafill.ai treats Word documents as first-class citizens in the form-filling pipeline. Upload a .doc, .docx, or .docm file either as a form template to be filled or as a data source to extract information from. The system handles format conversion and text extraction transparently — you interact with your document the same way you would any PDF.
Word files as source documents flow through the same AI field-mapping pipeline as PDFs. A .docx employee intake form submitted by HR, a .doc physician CV attached to a credentialing packet, or a Word-based insurance summary uploaded alongside a claim — each gets processed, text extracted, and field-matched against the target form with the same accuracy as native PDF sources. When a Word file is uploaded as the form template itself, it is converted to PDF before field extraction and filling, preserving the document's layout and field positions.
Key Capabilities
- Three Word format variants supported:
.docx(modern Word),.doc(legacy binary format), and.docm(macro-enabled Word) — all processed through the same normalization pipeline - Dual role: Word files work as form templates (the document being filled) or as source data (documents providing data to fill another form)
- Automatic conversion: Word-to-PDF conversion via Google Drive API or Adobe PDF Services SDK — no manual export, no third-party tools, no intermediate steps
- Full text extraction: Paragraph text, table contents, and list items extracted from both modern
.docxand legacy.docformats - Mix with other sources: Combine Word documents alongside PDFs, images, and email content in the same filling session — the AI draws from all sources together
- No template lock-in: Any Word document can be uploaded directly — no special formatting, bookmarks, or content controls required
- MIME-type aware: The system detects Word files by both MIME type and file extension, handling mismatched or renamed files correctly
- Full pipeline integration: Once converted, Word-based forms and sources enter the same autofill, review, and download workflow as any PDF
How Word Document Filling Works
Uploading a Word File as a Source
When you attach a Word document as a source in a form filling session, the system:
Detects the format: The system identifies Word files by both file extension and MIME type, handling mismatched or renamed files correctly.
.docx,.doc, and.docmformats are all recognized.Extracts text: Modern
.docxfiles are read using their native XML structure; legacy.docfiles use a binary format parser. Both return clean plain text that is passed into the AI field-mapping prompt.Maps to form fields: The extracted text enters the same semantic matching pipeline as any other source — field labels are matched to source content, date formats normalized, names parsed, and confidence scores assigned per field.
Flags for review: Fields mapped with low confidence appear highlighted in the visual editor for manual review before the form is finalized.
This means a .docx employee record submitted with an onboarding packet is treated identically to a scanned PDF — the AI extracts the same information and maps it to the same form fields.
Uploading a Word File as a Form Template
When you upload a Word document as the form to be filled rather than the data source:
Normalization: The system detects the Word file and routes it to conversion automatically.
Conversion to PDF: The Word document is converted to PDF via one of two paths — Google Drive API uploads the file, triggers export-as-PDF, and streams the result back; or Adobe PDF Services performs the same conversion. The conversion is automatic and invisible to the user.
Field extraction: The resulting PDF goes through the standard field extraction pipeline — AcroForm fields are read directly if present, or the flat-to-fillable conversion layer creates interactive fields from blank lines, underscores, and rectangles detected in the layout.
Filling and delivery: The form is filled using the same AI pipeline as any native PDF, and the result is available for download in your chosen output format.
Use Cases
HR and employee onboarding: HR teams often receive employee-provided documents in Word format — signed offer letter acknowledgments, personal data forms, emergency contact sheets, I-9 verification packets filled in Word. Uploading these directly as sources means data flows into the target form (background check consent, benefits enrollment, HRIS import packet) without anyone retyping name, address, date of birth, or SSN from a Word document into a PDF field.
Legal and contracts: Law firms maintain Word-based matter documents, client intake questionnaires, and executed agreement templates. When a new version of a court form or regulatory filing needs to be completed, uploading the relevant Word file — a prior engagement letter, a client fact sheet — as the source means the AI extracts party names, dates, representation scope, and jurisdiction details and maps them to the target form's fields. No copy-paste, no manual field-by-field comparison.
Healthcare credentialing and referrals: Physician CVs, clinical privilege request letters, and hospital-generated referral letters frequently arrive as Word documents. Uploading these as sources for credentialing packets — CAQH forms, facility-specific applications, DEA renewal forms — extracts education history, board certifications, license numbers, and procedure lists without manual transcription.
Legacy document archives: Organizations with years of completed forms, client records, or case files stored as .doc or .docx can use those archives as source data for filling current-format forms. The system's support for legacy .doc format means even documents created in Word 97-2003 can contribute data to modern form workflows without format conversion or IT intervention.
Real-World Examples: Insurance back-offices that receive Word-format employer group applications can extract coverage details, effective dates, and group sizes directly into enrollment forms. Government-facing contractors whose internal records are Word-based can pull project data, personnel details, and compliance checkboxes into agency PDF submissions.
Benefits
- Eliminate the Word-to-PDF conversion step: No more exporting from Word, re-uploading as PDF, then manually mapping. Upload the
.docxdirectly. - Keep working with your existing documents: Organizations that standardize on Word don't need to rebuild their document library in a different format to use Instafill.ai.
- Same accuracy as PDF sources: Word text extraction is clean and complete — the AI receives well-formed text directly from the file structure, not OCR'd rasterized output, which means higher match accuracy for Word-based sources than for equivalent scanned PDFs.
- Legacy format support included:
.docfiles from the Word 97-2003 era work without requiring resaving or conversion — the binary format is parsed natively. - Mix freely with other source types: A filling session can simultaneously use a
.docxemployee record, a scanned insurance card (JPEG), and a prior year's PDF application — the AI combines them all. - No structural requirements: Word files don't need bookmark-based fields, content controls, or any special preparation to work as sources. The AI reads the text as-is.
Security & Privacy
Word documents uploaded to Instafill.ai are subject to the same security handling as all source documents:
- Workspace-scoped access: Files are accessible only to users authenticated within the originating workspace. JWT middleware enforces this across both the .NET and Python service layers.
- Encrypted storage: Source text extracted from Word files is encrypted with workspace-scoped keys stored in Azure Key Vault before being written to Azure Blob Storage.
- Conversion security: Word-to-PDF conversion via Google Drive API uses a service account scoped to a controlled folder — the Word file is uploaded, converted, and the intermediate file is deleted from Drive. No document content persists on the conversion service.
- No AI training: Word documents you upload are processed only for your specific filling session. They are never used to train or fine-tune AI models.
- Configurable retention: Source documents — including converted Word files — follow the workspace retention policy and can be configured for automatic deletion after a defined period.
- Stateless option: For highly sensitive Word-based documents (privileged legal files, medical records, financial statements), Stateless Mode deletes all source content immediately after the form is filled.
Common Questions
Which Word file formats are supported?
Three Word format variants are supported:
.docx— Modern Word (Office 2007 and later, Open XML format). Text is read directly from the XML structure inside the file, capturing paragraphs, table cells, and list items..doc— Legacy binary format (Word 97-2003). Text is extracted from the binary format. Most content is recovered, though some formatting-heavy layouts may lose structure..docm— Macro-enabled Word documents. Treated identically to.docxfor text extraction and conversion purposes. Macros are not executed during processing.
.dotx and .dotm (Word template formats) are not currently supported as direct uploads — save these as .docx before uploading.
What happens when I upload a Word file as a form template?
The Word file is automatically converted to PDF before field processing. You don't control or see this step — you upload the .docx, and the system returns a fillable form.
During conversion, layout is preserved: fonts, spacing, paragraph formatting, and table structures are retained in the PDF output. After conversion, the PDF goes through the standard field extraction pipeline — if the Word document had blank lines, underscores, or formatted blank areas, those become interactive fields via the flat-to-fillable layer. If the document had no field indicators, you can add fields manually in the visual editor.
Converted form templates are stored and reused — you only convert once per document version.
Is a Word document extracted as accurately as a PDF?
For Word files used as source data, accuracy is typically higher than scanned PDFs. Python-docx reads text directly from the file's XML structure — the content is clean, complete, and doesn't depend on OCR. There's no image quality issue, no rotation artifact, and no handwriting ambiguity.
For Word files used as form templates (converted to PDF), accuracy depends on how clearly the document's layout communicates field positions. Documents with clear blank lines, labeled fields, and logical structure convert cleanly. Highly design-heavy layouts with complex floating elements may need minor field adjustments after conversion.
Can I combine a Word source with other source types in one session?
Yes — this is the typical workflow for complex forms. A session might use:
- A
.docxemployee intake form (Word source) for personal information - A scanned insurance card (JPEG) for insurance ID and group number
- A prior year's PDF application for fields carried over from previous submissions
The AI draws from all sources concurrently. When the same field appears in multiple sources with different values, the system flags the conflict for your review in the visual editor rather than silently choosing one.
Do I need to prepare the Word document in any special way?
No. Word documents used as sources require no special preparation — the AI reads the text as written. No bookmarks, content controls, or structured tags are needed.
Word documents used as form templates benefit from clear visual field indicators (underscores, blank lines, labeled empty spaces) to improve field detection after conversion to PDF. This is the same guidance that applies to any flat PDF form being uploaded as a template. If the document was already a structured form in Word, it will typically convert well.
What is the file size limit for Word document uploads?
The maximum file size for Word uploads is set at the workspace level. The default limit matches the PDF upload limit. For large Word files — multi-hundred-page policy documents, extensive contract archives — contact support to discuss enterprise limits.
For very large source documents, consider whether the relevant information can be isolated in a smaller excerpt. The AI's page-scoped retrieval maps source text to specific form page sections, but extremely large source files may produce slower processing times.